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Saturday, August 31, 2013

beginning of the year read-alouds

It's hard to believe that this is the third annual post about beginning of the year read-alouds! You can find other recommendations in posts from 2012 and 2011. With
all read alouds, it's really important to review the book first. You
know your school and community and need to make decisions about what
texts will work best for your students. As books for older readers,
there can sometimes be language and situations that some might object to
in a read-aloud. It's important to have a rationale for the books you
select that you can share if necessary.Also
important are selecting books that represent the diversity of your
classroom. Not every book can reach every student, but it's essential to
read a range of texts to students. Make your selections interesting, relevant, and worthy of discussion. So just about every teacher I know is on Pintrest, and there are a couple of beginning of the year boards that you might be interested in. There are boards here and here that have a lot of suggestions.Below are some elementary, middle school, and high school suggestions with some (very) brief summaries.Elementary School:There's a great blog post at the NY Times about back-to-school read recommendations for parents to read to children or for new readers to
pick up on their own. These would work well as classroom read alouds as well.Here are some more picks:Scaredy Squirrel by Melanie Watt: sweet story about accidentally learning to overcome fearsHave You Filled a Bucket Today? by Carol McCloud and David Messing: helps kids see the joy of being kind to othersMy Mouth is a Volcano by Julia Cook and Carrie Hartman: Louis just can't help saying everything that comes to him, but learns how to wait his turn to speakDonovan's Word Jar by Monalisa DeGross and Cheryl Hanna: Donovan loves words and keeps them in a jar, until the jar runs out of room. What will he do?Ruby the Copycat by Margaret Rathmann: a first-day of school story about learning to be yourselfRoslyn Rutabaga and the Biggest Hole on Earth by Marie-Louise Gay: a great story about the power of imaginationSplat the Cat: Back to School Splat! by Rob Scotton: sharing summer adventures during the first-day of school show-and-tellMore than Anything Else by Marie Bradby and
Chris K. Soentpiet: a fictionalized story of Booker T. Washington and his wish to learn to readThe Bee Tree by Patricia Polocco: charming book about reading and learning from grandparents Hooray for Diffendoofer Day by Dr. Seuss, Jack Prelutsky, and Lane Smith: these three authors/illutrators' work comes together to tell the story of a powerful teacherThe Girl Who Never Made Mistakes by Gary Rubinstein andMark Pett: it's ok to make mistakes!The Miraculous Journey of Edward Toulane by Kate DiCamillo and Bagram Ibatoulline: loss and loveMiddle School: A Teaspoon of Courage for Kids by Bradley Trevor Greive: the first weeks of middle school can be great. They can also be tough. A little pick-me-up for kids.Richard Wright and the Library Card by William Miller: story of author Richard Wright's struggle to gain access to a public library Wonder by R.J. Palacio: Lots of buzz with this book about a boy born with Treacher-Collins syndrome told in multiple voicesWaiting for Normal by Leslie Connor: Addie doesn't let her situation get her down, but is waiting for a more normal life to settle intoCinder by Marissa Meyer: sci-fi twist on cinderella as a cyborgGirl, Stolen by April Henry: an accidental kidnapping begins this page-turnerThe Dreamer by Pam Munoz-Ryan and Peter Sis: biography, poetry, and fiction blend to create this magical realism story of poet Pablo Neruda Storm Runners and Peak by Roland Smith: If your students like adventure, Smith writes some good onesA Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz: funny and scary tales of Hansel and Gretel finding themselves in other Grimm fairy talesSwear to Howdy by Wendelin Van Draanen: a story of true friendship and keeping secrets Dear Bully: Seventy Authors Tell Their Stories edited by Dawn Metcalf,Megan Kelley Hall
and Carrie Jones: today's popular authors tell their personal stories of bullying - as bullies, victims and bystanders Savvy by Ingrid Law: a great story about growing up and the importance of familyHattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson: historical fiction set in 1918 tells of orphan Hattie leaving Iowa for Montana to search for a real homeWonderstruck by Brian Selznick: If you have a doc cam, this is a beautiful book for a read aloud. In fact, I like this follow-up by Selznick even more than The Invention of Hugo Cabret. Yeah, I said it.

High School:

Monstrumologist by Richard Yancey: gory and full of adventure - a definite page-turner

The Late Homecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir by Kao Kalia Yang: Yang beautifully shares her family's escape from Thailand and the challenge of adapting to life in the US.

Trapped by Michael Northrop: thriller survival story of teens caught in a blizzard

Guardian by Julius Lester: set in segregated south, the story of the lynching of a black man falsely accused of rape told through a boy who knows the truth but keeps silent

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins: The first in a series about a girl who discovers she's a witch. classic teen drama and situations

Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti: yes, a Holocaust book, but a really good oneShort stories/essays by David Sedaris, David Rakoff, Sarah Vowell, Augusten Burroughs, David BoyneWhat are your favorite beginning of the year read alouds? Add your suggestions in the comments! Happy reading!